The sun is shining, there's not a cloud in the sky, it's warm and bright and I got a refund check from the hospital in the mail! Can the day get any better? Did I mention our annual plague of frogs woke up yesterday?
Hope your day is just as good and if it isn't, then I just annoyed the crap out of you. Sorry!

You scored as Egyptian Pantheonic Pagan. You scored as an Egyptian Pagan. With equal draw to both men and women, the Egyptian pantheon is a wealth of ancient stories and forgotten customs. Very seductive to the more cerebral Pagans, devoting oneself to this faith often means being willing to really work on finding out who your Gods were. Never an easy undertaking. Dedicated and insightful, you know you're among good company with those who also understand your Gods. Egyptian Pantheonic Pagan 100% Shamanic Pagan 55% Zoroastrian Pagan 50% Greek Pantheonic Pagan 25% Norse Pantheonic Pagan (Asatru) 20% Eastern Pagan 20% Kabbalistic Pagan 15% Ecclectic Pagan 15% Roman Pantheonic Pagan 5% Sumerian, Babylonian, and Mesopotamian Pagans 5% Catholic (Pagan?) 5% Celtic Pantheonic Pagan 5% What kind of Pagan are you? created with QuizFarm.com Well DUH! LOL.  Since I am HPS of a Kemetic Temple it does help to be an Egyptian Pagan (Kemetic). What is it about quizes that fascinates us so much?  When we were in school they certainly held no interest, but now, it all seems different.  Perhaps it is the subject matter?  Or maybe the fact that there is no pressure to get a good grade?   Well, whichever, these are fun and the link for this one is above if you want to give it a go.

Temple Ankh is a Kemetic Temple located in the beautiful hills of North Central Kentucky.  Situated within a 25 acre private woodland sanctuary gives our members the ability to witness nature at it's finest, no matter the season.

We are a Temple that worship the ancient Egyptian Gods and Goddesses through Rituals, Prayers and Spells dedicated and directed to the Old ones who still hold the power of the universe. We are NOT a web based group, although we do have members from other states and countries who are just as welcome as our local members are.

We have a Yahoo group where we keep in contact with each other and where most of our member activities are held.  We offer:

We have several monthly activities for you to enjoy, such as:
Online Seminars on a variety of subjects Metaphysical and Ancient Egyptian.
Online Belly Dance Course.
A Temple Lesson Plan with P/PS, HP/HPS and Eldership training.
Thought for the Day - currently from Radical Spirituality by Dick Sutphen
Joke of the Day.
Online Counselors.
Immediate access to all Elders.
and a very active Message Board.

If you would like to join our group, here is the link:   http://groups.yahoo.com/group/EgyptianCoven/

Our physical Temple holds Celebrations during the Solstices and Equinoxes, an Annual Harvest Celebration, Annual Trial of Set adventure and several other activities throughout the year.  More information on the Temple can be found at www.templeankh.com  or by joining the Yahoo group.

This is our Temple at rest during the summer.

If you have any questions, you can email me at mysticherbs@hotmail.com.  Please put Temple Ankh as the subject line of your email.

I love working with Fire.  It is so beautiful and so basic to our survival.  Without fire, we would not exist.  It is as simple as that.  This element rules our passions, our love, and the learning years of our life.  It is from this element that we achieve our hopes, our dreams and our life's goals and it is from this element that we are given our heartaches and our biggest disappointments.

You should practice safety measures when working with any element, even more so when working with Fire, as it alone has the power to kill you with only a small flame.  A teaspoon of water, air or earth can not harm you, but a small candle flame too close to your robes can cause a huge fire from which you may not emerge alive.  So make sure you are not wearing loose fitting clothing, and keep a bucket of water on hand to quench any flames that get out of hand.

It is best to work with Fire Magic outdoors in a campfire / balefire type setting.  But if that is impossible, then a small fire in your backyard, or in a fireplace works just as well, or, in a pinch, a small fire in your cauldron will do.  If your indoors, make sure the room is well ventilated.

There are many things that can be thrown into a fire that will produce some interesting effects.  Sugar will make a nice fire ball rise up, so make sure your standing back when you toss a handful in, and make a wish when you do.  Legend has it that the flames will send your wish straight up to the Gods and they are more likely to grant your wish.  Sulpher also has some neat effects, as does table salt and powdered vitamin C.

A mix of sugar, salt and powdered vitamin C makes a very nice powder that can be used as a wishing powder for Rituals where children are present.  Allow the children to each take a handful of the powder and toss it into the balefire as they make a wish.  Explain to them that the sparks are fairy flames that carry their wishes up to the Great Gods.  A wonderful tradition to add to any Celebration or Festival.

You can also change the color of the flames by tossing in some chemicals.

• Boric acid - green/blue flame.
• Lithium chloride - red flame.
• Copper chloride - green/blue flame.
• Indium - deep violet flame.
• Strontium compounds - red flame.
• Calcium compounds - orangy-red flame.
• Barium compounds - green flame.
• Potassium chloride - purple flame.

The green flames in this photo were created using a product called Mystic Fire, available through Mystic Herbs.  For more info email mysticherbs@hotmail.com

Depending on the amount of chemicals you throw in, the effects can last anywhere from a couple of minutes to as long as 2 hours.  If your looking for the same effects for just a couple of seconds, toss in the colored comic section from the Sunday newspaper.

This post is meant for entertainment purposes only and does not advocate playing with fire. 

 

Candles, I love them, all kinds.  And Im always buying them for the house, as well a ton of votive to use as candles for spell working.  Consequently, I have a ton iof left over candle stubs and wax drippings that I refuse to throw away.  It's perfectly good wax so I see no sense in just tossing it out the door.

Instead, I reuse the old wax for Ritual candles.  I almost always buy jar style household candles.  that way, I have a nice jar to use for storage when I am finished with the candle.  I'll clean the wax out of the jar when I have just about enough wax left in the candle to full up a large mouth salsa jar with the wax.  Then that's exactly what I do.  I melt the wax in a double boiler until I can pour it out of the original candle jar and straight into the new jar, after placing a new wick into it.  Then I have a new candle and a cute storage jar.

If there really isn't enough wax left to make another jar candle, I will set it aside in containers with other bits of wax of the same color for candle making day.

Candle making day requires some preparations, unless you really want to buy a bunch of equipment.  If your on a budget, then you want to save up several cans that hold vegetables soups, juices, etc.  Remove the labels and wash them well.  You will need one can for every color and scent combination that you will be making.  The size of the can is determined by how many candles you plan to make, as the can will hold the amount of wax for one 'batch' of candles, all in the same color and scent.  You can never guarantee that you can perfectly match a candles color unless you make the candles in the same batch.

You will also need to have wicks, scent and a coloring agent that is acceptable for use in wax.  You can buy the expensive stuff from stores, or you can just buy yourself a box of crayons.  They work equally as well.  You will still need to purchase wicks, scent and unless you have saved up a whole lot of candle stubs you might want to pick up a slab of wax and a hardening agent such as stearine.  You will also want to have a jar or conainer to pour your handmade candles into, as these are the quickest and easiest to make at home.  I recommend using home canning jars, particularly the size used to can jelly.  Their are a good size, sturdy and best of all, reusable.

Start with a clean work surface and clean stove top.  You will need a big stew pot, the cans and all the candle making supplies you have accumulated.  Start by breaking up the slab of wax into smaller pieces, about the same size as your fist.  Don't try to this by cutting it with a knife.  Just take it outdorrs and drip it onto concrete a few times.

Add a few inches of water into your pot and set it on a burner on low heat.

Choose which color fo wax you want to work with first and get the old wax pieces out if you have any.  Place them into the appropriate sized can and add new wax if you feel it is needed to make the number and size of candle(s) you want to make.  Place the can into the pot of water, making sure that the water level is way below the rim of the can and that no water can get into the can.  You can deepen or slightly alter the color of the wax by adding crayon pieces as it melts.

Never leave wax alone while it is on the stove,  It is highly flammable!

You may need to adjust the heat under the pot.  Only use enough heat to melt the wax fully.  Once it has melted, add the stearine according to the package directions.  Add the scent and stir, then pour it into your containers, until the containers are almost full.  The wax will settle as it cools, which will require a final pour to even out the top, so never make the first pour reach the level of the final candle.

Allow the first pour to cool before making the final pour.  Once the final pour has cooled and the surface is still a little rough, you can take a bit of soft wax in a contrasting color, roll it out flat and use a small cookie cutter to cut out a shape to lay over the top of the area that is rough.  If you can't fix it, Hide it!

So there's your basic how-to of candle making and melting.  You can purchase a 10lb block of wax for about $10.00 at most craft supply stores and a box of crayons for a couple of bucks, but it is the wick and the scent that will run the cost up.  However, it is still cheaper to make your own as opposed to purchasing them, especially for the Big jar candles.  Votive candles to use for spellworking, however, it is cheaper to buy them at a dollar store for 4/$1.00 or less.

Now let's get creative with those Ritual candles. 

 The remnants of spell candles can easily be used to create wonderfully charged Cardinal Point Candles with the Addition of just one item to your inventory.  A cylindrical candle mold.  Place your wick in the mold, like you normally would for a candle, then add the pieces of the spell candles around it.  Break the candle remnants into chunks so they fit easily.  Keep the colors true to the Cardinal Point they belong to, then pour plain white wax, or lightly tinted wax over the whole thing until the mold is full.  These are beautiful candles for your Cardinal points, and when they are almost finished, chop them up, and toss them all together into a mold with gold or silver tinted wax and you have a perfect Altar candle.

All from those household candles you enjoyed so much and the spell candles that helped your loved ones through difficult or blessed times.

Reduce, Reuse Recycle.  It's what we are supposed to do.